The Ups and Downs, of You and Me
by Kajune
Summary: Shizuo dreads the idea of going to school because of a certain raven-haired, but little does he know how a simple statement can turn a rivalry...into something much more intimate. Shizaya
1. Another Monday Morning

**Title **: The Ups and Downs, of You and Me

**Disclaimer** : I do not own any of the Characters of Durarara!.

**Genre** : Romance / Drama

**Warning **: Contains maleXmale content. OOCness. OCs.

**Summary **: Shizuo dreads the idea of going to school because of a certain raven-haired, but little does he know how a simple statement can turn a rivalry...into something much more intimate. Shizaya

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**Another Monday Morning**

* * *

The morning sun is shining brightly upon the city, alerting all its citizens that a new day has arrived. Students of all schools begin to get dressed and exit their homes, while adults do just the same as they rush for work, hoping for an extra raise in salary should they succeed.

Some people require motivation to get up on a Monday morning, and each have their own unique reasons, ranging from the actual desire to go to school/work, to wanting to stay out of the house, to hoping to meet their boyfriend or girlfriend, to simply preferring something to do.

However, at least one young man apparently lacks _any_ motivation to step out of bed.

Lying face down on the cheap but comfy surface, his head to one side upon the small puffy pillow, Heiwajima Shizuo refuses to listen to the alarm clock his mother oh-so kindly bought for him, and tries hard to ignore the light shining through the curtains. _Damn_, he wished he had thicker curtains.

With a groan, he turns to look down into the pillow, thus blocking all light from reaching his eyes. For a while, his attempts at staying in bed seem successful, until another noise persists in keeping him awake. Who in the world would call him a little after sunrise on a Monday morning? Shizuo's mind could only guess one person as annoying as that.

Regretfully, does he extend his hand to grab the yellow cellphone on the side table, wanting to hear no more the sound of his preferred ringtone. He didn't choose it because he wants to listen to it all day long, he just enjoys it over the other songs he came to know.

Flipping the device open and pressing the green button, Shizuo steadily moves it close to his ear, and immediately wishes he hadn't.

"GOOD MORNING, SHIZUO-KUN~!"

The joyful and energetic tone of his longtime friend instantly rings in his ears. He guessed right, the identity of who dares to bother him so early in the morning. Since today isn't the first school day he has tried to skip, it is not a new story that he does such a thing, leading to one optimistic and highly-annoying self-proclaimed doctor to wake him up personally.

He's lucky he doesn't get punched everytime he sees him in person.

"Do you know what today is? It's Monday! Now grab your lazy self and let's-"

Uninterested in hearing that same phrase over and over again, Shizuo hangs up, and lazily drops the phone onto the floor. Seriously, if only he had a way of teaching his friend a lesson, he could actually manage to avoid school without going through drastic measures. Shizuo had once faked having a fever, leading to his beloved brother to want to tend to him, only for him and their parents to soon find out he was trying to skip school. He was sent straight to that hell-hole just after lunch, and became quite the gossip of the day.

He had also attempted to injure himself, and although this did spark sympathy, he recovered all too quickly, and barely missed the first period. Shizuo has done more than just this too, including getting beaten up by gangsters, setting his hand on fire, to claiming he had found love outside school.

Being naturally bad at lying, everyone close to him soon found out that he was faking it all, or at least, causing damage to himself on purpose. However, only his two close friends, Shinra and Kadota, know exactly why he hates going to school; his parents just think he's being lazy.

Far from it.

With another loud groan, Shizuo pushes himself out of bed, knowing that the sun's light won't die down just for one sore loser. His parents also won't keep forgiving him for his numerous attempts at avoiding school. One day, this may all come back to bite him.

So, in order to maintain a peaceful life at home, Shizuo is forced to drag his abnormal body around the house until he is dressed, fed and packed for school. He walks out the front door unenthusiastically, and soon does he find himself approaching Shinra, who is waiting not far from the school's gates. How the hell did he get here so soon, he dares not to know, certainly not because deep down he actually _wants_ to come.

"Yo, Shizuo-kun." The smiling friend waves.

"Call me this early again and I'll punch you into a wall, got it?" Shizuo threatens, though this only earns him a light chuckle.

Although he is famous for his strength and violent nature, Shizuo is naturally a gentle person, unable to hit anyone unless he is really pushed. The limit to how hard he can be toyed with is extended greatly when it comes to friends, which is why Shinra has only heard these threats each day and never actually got stuck in a wall.

However, since he is _only_ a friend, Shizuo feels the need to continue reminding him...just how close he is to death.

The two then quietly proceed to enter school grounds, and just as he sets foot onto the ground past the gate, Shizuo can sense it...no, he can **smell** it.

Still in the tracks - much to the surprise of Shinra - Shizuo looks up, and once again, daring to show his face, is a fellow schoolmate who is darkly dressed, looking down on him from high up, with a grin.

Oh, how badly he wants to rip that grin off his face.

Shizuo sends a death glare at the other, hoping to at least intimidate him before they actually make contact today. It's him though, the reason why Shizuo dreads school. The very reason why he'd rather lose a hand than to march into this fine place with pride and honor. There is no pride and honor within these grounds when faced with someone so twisted as the one gazing down upon him now.

How sickening it is to be met with those eyes. He despises even the mere thought of it.

Shinra never gets the chance to notice the reason for his friend's sudden halt, when said friend breaks the eye contact and continues to walk towards the front entrance. Shinra is left confused, but follows anyway. Under his breath, does Shizuo growl at the thought of having likely sent joy into the heart of his rival rather than fear, as he intended to. Clenching his fist, while trying to look as calm as possible, Shizuo swears that one day, he'll love school again.

He'll love it, because there will be no _it_.


	2. Another Pesky Confrontation

**Title **: The Ups and Downs, of You and Me

**Disclaimer** : I do not own any of the Characters of Durarara!.

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**Another Pesky Confrontation**

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Wearing his second pair of white shoes, Shizuo takes heavy steps into the classroom, still not sure whether to just stop and turn around or to keep moving forward. The reality that his parents (and teachers) won't forgive him if he leaves is the only thing pushing him deeper inside the building. It takes a good ten minutes for Shizuo to make it to his class from the front entrance, alongside a chirping and prancing Shinra, whose reason for being happy is unknown to him.

It's alright if it forever remains...unknown to him.

The pair enter the classroom almost silently, with Shizuo's fearful presence sending a few classmates away from the back part of the classroom, where he sits. Walking further in, Shizuo spares a quick glare to the seat right behind his, since it belongs to_ that thing_. How the hell did said thing convince their homeroom teacher to take that seat is a miracle, but he has owned it since day one, and has always managed to keep the spot, as well as the couple of desks that have been replaced there.

Without so much as a sound, Shizuo's feet stop their line of regretful steps once he reaches his desk, his bag dropped upon it immediately after. His desire for not wanting to come here being so strong that his whole body feels heavy, making the bag an extra weight almost too painful to carry. No one spares the blond a glance as he slumps down onto the seat, his hands casually intertwined behind his head.

His brown eyes then stare out through one of the opened windows, with the intention of doing so continuously, maybe even through the entire first period.

By the looks of it (not that Shizuo is looking), the class is barely half full, which isn't a surprise since it is still pretty early. Only the very dedicated come at such a time. Shizuo's motive for being here now is to avoid rejection, people telling him not to stay home. He's heard such words far too many times, and it's not like he enjoys seeing his mother upset either, especially when he's the cause.

With Shinra sitting near the center of the class, a spot he literally begged the teacher to give him, on knees too, the blond is without company. Since their mutual friend - Kadota - has yet to come, and may not come today either due to _proper_ reasons, the chances of someone sparking a decent conversation with Shizuo are now down to zero. He has never really considered Shinra's series of questions or proclaims of love to have any sense in them anyway.

After about three minutes (not five as Shizuo would have much more preferred), a mop of pitch black hair invades the class. A few eyes glance over to the presence, with wariness in all pairs that acknowledge the _pest_. Although he remains quiet, eyes fixed on the only thing he declares worthy of his attention, the one he so despises is approaching him...

_Smiling._

It takes a ton of effort to resist throwing a mean insult or a bone-breaking punch as that hedious smile - the one he saw earlier - continues to taunt him silently. He has been needing to brutalize the other since the moment their eyes met, but out of decency does the blond not. Once the raven gracefully lands himself behind Shizuo, the sheer proximity causes tension to rise in the class, tension that their beloved (though unfortunate) classmates have been trying so hard to adapt to, albeit to no avail.

Only Shinra, the one to spark this tension to start with, is able to endure the sense of fear it gives off.

While this sensation is mostly caused by Shizuo's pure dislike in the raven, he is certain that it exists also because such dislike is mutual. Although it may not be apparent just how the one sitting behind him feels for him, exactly how much does it (obviously) hate him, Shizuo still knows he is not loved.

With white clouds being the only things in his line of vision, the only things his glaring eyes and restless mind wish to acknowledge, a fight does not occur as the presence behind the blond remains eerily silent, but likely amused at the astounding display of self-control by someone so ill-tempered.

Other than a brief glance at his second friend, Shinra's eyes remain on the blackboard in front of him, his mind probably elsewhere as his childish chirping refuses to die down. At least it is no louder than a whisper, or else he'd be annoying the few girls and fewer boys present.

Similar to how the creature behind him has managed to frustrate him at every encounter, and how he himself has managed to make enemies out of gangsters simply due to his strength, Shinra has his own way of starting fights, causing trouble and annoying those around him, all thanks to his bubbly personality. Apparently, this teenager is capable of lacking any interest in his surroundings, any care or concern for the lives around him, whenever he feels the need to express his personal enjoyment and happiness.

Fortunately though, he doesn't always behave like this, and for that Shizuo has yet to kill him.

After almost forty long (torturous) minutes and many ticks of clocks and watches later, the homeroom teacher, a late forties man whose hair is partially white, finally enters the classroom with a suppressed urge to clap his hands, a result from seeing the class spotless despite Shizuo and his enemy being present together. Not a single scratch can be seen anywhere, and this has not been the case for sometime.

Although the result of Shizuo's amazing self control pleases all those around him, the blond himself is going through a painful wait as he forces his eyes to look in only one direction, without making any sound nor even a tiny growl as his fingers claw at the strains of his hair, effortfully resisting the urge to strangle the thing not far from arm's reach; thus creating a calm Shizuo.

All the blond ever said during those forty minutes was a single, honest declaration spoken in his mind.

_"I hate him."_

For the first time ever, Shizuo remains quiet.

Proudly...quiet.

* * *

The thought of congratulating Shizuo was always there, the urge true and strong, but the old man knew better as he wisely chose to march straight out of the class instead, being the first to step into the hall as students began to follow, their pushed-about seats making noises as they finally got up, some pair of legs now feeling numb. Shizuo wanted to pretend like he wasn't there, to ignore the lesson and keep up the sense of calmness he never thought he'd feel with such an existence behind him. However, while their teacher knew how far he could go with Shizuo, he was also well aware that he held authority and gave Shizuo the look during class that spelled 'you better listen or else get yourself in trouble'.

There are many things Shizuo hates doing, and upsetting his parents with his bad behavior is one of them. So, he reluctantly freed his hands from each other and the strains of hair he had yanked out, and once again did his best to understand what he couldn't always make sense of.

Left with new homework in a less-than-happy mood, Shizuo sighs before pushing himself up, his mind on his work just when a book hits him flat on the head, and this causes eyes to finally turn to him. He doesn't need to ask who did it, for the answer is obvious, and he should have expected this action sooner. While Shizuo believes he can be peaceful while studying at school, he knows that this will forever be made impossible for as long as a certain someone studies at school with him.

While most people would reach up to rub the spot, Shizuo simply glares furiously at the smirking raven. No fear, no worry, no hesitation, none are present in those eyes, those reddish-brown eyes. Even as pure hate emits from the taller teen, the one black from nearly head to toe only shines his white teeth besides the former's desk as words are shouted out.

"Flea!"

Still, there is no sign of fear, no nothing, just pure confidence.

In response, the shorter of the two announces his first 'death wish' as some classmates watch in horror and slight disappointment, the latter feeling mostly from Shinra. The tension from earlier has now increased tenfold.

"Ne~ Shizu-chan. What do you think you're doing acting all civil?"

It wasn't necessary to add the words "it doesn't look" or "doesn't seem right", not when there was no reason for the 'flea' to mention it if it _did_ seem perfectly normal. All questions ever directed from the black to the blond have never required an answer, never will, since all are simply to point out what the raven sees next as wrong in the other.

Which is why, his words anger said blond so very much.

Swiftly, does the many-times-replaced desk of Heiwajima Shizuo finds itself lifted, and then thrown, only to smash into a few other desks and chairs as its intended target slips away, this time heading straight out without another word, taking the heavy history book with him. Whatever is now left of the once again destroyed object, is used to chase after said target, with an angry roar to accompany them.

"IZAYA!"

No one dares to stop furious blond.

Not anymore.

Not even a clapping Shinra, who is merely expressing sarcasm.

_Here we go again._

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**Author's Note** : I'm sorry for the poor quality. I haven't been doing well with writing for the past couple of months. I'll truly and fix it up later. For now, please enjoy.

07/01/2015 ~ Re-wrote this chapter a bit. Didn't seem right. Hope it's better now.


	3. Ridden with Punishments

**Title **: The Ups and Downs, of You and Me

**Disclaimer** : I do not own any of the Characters of Durarara!.

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**Ridden with Punishments**

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Shizuo's latest chase with the raven had ended with him nearly crashing into their vice-principle, a man strangely large and severely rigid, and one of the few people Shizuo is actually afraid of. Being a man who doesn't tolerate any form of mischief, he is often the one to discipline students (including Shizuo) and not always in a merciful manner.

His parents have met him enough times to know him by his full name.

With the remains of his chair in hand, the terrified blond is roughly grabbed by his shirt collar and dragged off, the raven having evaded this confrontation by taking a swift and early turn around the corner, managing to avoid the man who would appear from said corner seconds later.

A whole two hours was spent inside the office of the more lenient principle. Since Shizuo's trouble-making has caused the school more problems that they can afford to fix, the principle now merely decides if the means of punishment suggested by the vice-principle are truly deserving or not. He no longer decides his own form of punishment for Shizuo, which have all been far more friendlier than those of the taller man.

With a disappointed look, the principle came to an agreement and Shizuo, by the words of the man clamping his arm tightly, was forced to memorize and repeat the sentences until he got every syllable right. Should it be up to this man alone to decide one's punishment, as it is for some students, then Shizuo would likely be brought to tears.

His mother has already shed some due to this man.

After finally satisfying the vice-principle, Shizuo left the office to carry out one of the punishments, effectively skipping the remaining morning classes as he kind of hoped in doing this morning, though not by scrubbing one of the boy's bathrooms in yellow gloves. Luckily, only the more timid boys came in and caught the embarrassing sight, before running away. Should any of the more daring students had seen this, he would have met humiliation on a grand scale.

It took nearly a whole hour for Shizuo to finish his cleaning, making sure not to leave any reason for one to think he was being neglectful. After returning the cleaning equipment to the janitor, Shizuo silently makes his way down the hall, lunch box dangling from his hand. Problems like these are the reasons why Shizuo - even unconsciously - tries to resist coming to school. He much prefers not thinking about the other punishments that man has forced upon him, all which make school increasingly unattractive.

"Shizuo-kun~!"

A jolly voice calls to him, leading his tired brown eyes to look up and see the owner, Shinra, bearing a childish smile as he kindly waits for him not far ahead. Only at times when he does nice things like this does Shizuo lose all urge to hurt him. Sadly, his (sometimes) heart-warming presence cannot make up for the agony Shizuo has to go through by being in this building.

Once by his friend's side, the two proceed to walk towards the stairs, Shizuo smiling briefly as they go along, a smile small but genuine. As students around them ignore their presence and continue with their lunch break, most chattering about with giggles here and there, Shizuo decides he should answer his friend's question, one which doesn't have to be asked, since it is so obvious what intends to come out from those curved up lips.

"Got in trouble with the vice-principle again." The blond admits, his expression one of pure annoyance.

Shinra, whose lunch box is firmly held behind his back, turns to look at the other with interest in his eyes. He indeed wants to know why the renowned blond had not been by his side this morning, especially during the oh-so enjoyable science class, topic : dissection.

Scratching the back of his head, Shizuo somewhat begins complaining aka venting his frustration about his day, without throwing a tantrum. It should be noted that this isn't the first time Shinra has heard about the other's unfortunate encounters with their vice-principle, a man he himself has yet to anger.

It doesn't take long for the pair to arrive at the school's rooftop, the place being where some students, such as the blond, enjoy spending their free time at. Those who come here at the beginning of the year often get to choose their own spot, and keep said spot until some uninformed new kid comes by and gets a surprise of their life. Of course, there is also the bullies, who always manage to 'steal' other people's spots, if not simply leave it in a mess.

Shizuo has yet to have any problems concerning the spot he shares with three others.

Placing himself gently on the white tiles not far from the entrance, Shizuo leans his back against the railing. His brown eyes then gaze up at the clouds, what he sees always a sight able to calm him, and one of the reasons why he enjoys eating here, apart from the lack of people in comparison to indoors.

It takes a while after Shinra has picked up his chopsticks and said his prayers before eating that he turns round, eyeing the dazing blond briefly before making a sound, the silent Shizuo becoming a tad more scarier than an noisy Shizuo.

"Are you okay, Shizuo-kun?"

His asks, caring not there is a piece of food in his eager mouth.

Not wanting to spoil the mood, Shizuo keeps his eyes on the drifting clouds as he answers,

"Just relaxing."

Truly, that is all he is doing. With the morning beset with problems, there can be nothing more the blond wants than a moment of peace. Peace is something harder for him to find than a four-leaf clover, and not that he hadn't found such a clover once during childhood, a time which was full of chaos for him.

Understanding and just about noticing the tiredness on the other's face, Shinra gives a nod before resuming the food that can't seriously be as delicious as his chewing sounds imply. Neither speak for a while, and none of the students around them, all chatting with their own groups or own best friends, pay them any attention. The moment is truly peaceful, even as more people arrive at the rather quiet rooftop.

That is until...

"Shizu-chan~!"

When a darkly dressed raven rears his head from behind the opened door, Shinra nearly chokes on half of the piece of meat he had been biting, the other half slipping from his chopsticks. His eyes are wide with shock, out of fear of dying from suffocation. Students who were entering from that same entrance become scared upon hearing the too-sweetly-said-name, as those already present, or those who at least heard the call, look up with horror on each of their faces.

A vein instantly pops on Shizuo's forehead. It doesn't take a genius to know that immediately behind that jolly expression and happy voice...is pure, bloody disdain. The raven is most likely once again annoyed at his rival's display of normality, something which he continues to fight to remove completely. However, with every intention of becoming normal, Shizuo's temper rises drastically.

He hadn't even opened his lunch box yet, which has been resting on his extended knee in one hand as he sat.

With peace officially gone (again), Shizuo slowly looks down and glares _viciously_ into those smiling orbs. Before, it took Shizuo to tell his friends he'd be gone for a while for them to move away and safeguard his food, however, Shinra now does it on instinct, slowly taking the blue box from Shizuo's hand as he slides away, the very moment the box finds itself on his lap is the instant Shizuo dashes from his sitting position, the raven quickly vanishing as the blond pursues him.

The students on the roof continue to look at the door in complete horror as the students on the immediate floor below scream in fear. Soon, does the sound of objects smashing and breaking resonate throughout the facility.

Shinra alone upon that still quiet place sits happily, his own lunch box being devoured as he grins to himself.

Only one word slips past his food-stuffed mouth as he continues to chew, no longer afraid of the tiny piece of meat that didn't end up killing him.

_"Celty..."_

* * *

Although Shizuo is wary of running into the vice-principle yet again, his anger towards the raven he partially blames for this morning's problems is overclouding his judgment. To fully blame him is out of the question, for such an excuse has never worked on the vice-principle whenever caught during one of their fights.

The pair race down the hallways as every life form hastily moves out of their way, some letting out screams while others drop their things. Less than a year of witnessing this destructive relationship, most of the school has yet to adapt to their presence and found perfect ways to survive.

Some students and even a few teachers have already found themselves on the receiving end of flying objects and a couple of sharp knives. The cause of this rivalry is not clear to anyone, some even think it is just a game, and maybe the raven actually thinks this, but Shizuo is far from believing to be anything other than a war.

The pair manage to run through two floors, with Shizuo having thrown nearly every object in his reach, including a fire extinguisher and someone's dropped book, but seeing how this again only upsets their kind principle, Shizuo decides to try and catch the teen as opposed to knocking him down. There is always this small sense of hope inside him, a feeling that constantly tells him during his encounters with the raven that he'll catch him, defeat him, _something_ to him that will bring forth a sense of gratification.

Never has this happened, though.

However, this feeling refuses to die down, always remaining in the depths of Shizuo's heart to keep him somewhat motivated in getting rid of the other, even if it means disposing of his existence.

As this feeling pushes him on, the shorter teenager comes to an abrupt halt, Shizuo forced to stop before accidently crashing into him, something he considers more unfortunate than lucky. A few watch from the sidelines as the raven stands still, eerily silent, but when the moody blond takes a step forward, a bit curious, a girl ahead of them screams, seconds before a switchblade slices Shizuo along the bridge of his nose, blood instantly spraying out.

Stumbling back, Shizuo's eyes catch the sight of a very menacing expression, twisted even, with a large grin to make it look even more...annoying.

'So he was reaching for his switchblade, huh?'

Shizuo thinks to himself, and once both feet firmly touch the floor, he prepares to return the favor by throwing a punch at the raven, but as usual, his supposedly perfect aim misses the slippery thing which ends up standing right next to the extended arm, before slicing it too.

People begin to step back, wanting to avoid being part of the bloodshed. It is clear to those present that these two don't mean fun and games, but death, if not really rough teasing.

Shizuo swings his arm sideways, and growls angrily when he misses again. This time his back gets sliced, vertically, but the pain on each wound feels no different from a tiny ant bite; it is the boiling anger inside him that makes every assault feel so nasty.

When he delivers his next blow, swinging that same arm towards the head he so wants to crush, the most irritating event that usually happens between them is...

The thing disappearing.

The blond looks around everywhere, but sees not a hair of his hated rival. It is a mystery how the other always evades trouble, always evades death, and forces Shizuo to instead find ways to avoid him himself. Since peace is something he highly cherishes, to pursue the other further when they are finally apart sounds off-putting. So, after a few deep breaths, the blond takes one final look around in case of any strict teacher before heading back, hopefully Shinra has kept his food nice and safe.

Once again, the dangerous chase has ended, leaving behind nothing but fear in the hearts of witnesses and a mess far too expensive, and too endless for a certain man to care. Having heard the distant screams from his office, he sighs.

Raijin Academy has become a sort of war zone thanks to those two.

What will it take to change this?


End file.
